The Highwayman: No romance in the heart of the world'

“I tried hard to live his way, but I could not do it. I could not live with a man to whom even a cabin was an encumbrance.”

— Beatrice Farnham Otto

By The Highwayman

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— There is a romantic side to Colorado National Monument. There must be. Look at the names. One of the unusual rock formations in this fabulous landscape is called the Kissing Couple. There’s a Pipe Organ. And Praying Hands. And one of the park’s most popular and photographed canyons is called Wedding Canyon.

Enchanting? Oh, yes ... but this rugged maze of canyons overlooking the Grand Valley of the Colorado River in western Colorado can be simultaneously terrifying as well. Hairpin turns above bottomless canyons might tend to dull the romantic edge for some folks.

Rim Rock Drive is a 23-mile scenic drive that offers frequent breathtaking — it can be hard to breathe with your heart in your throat — views of the numerous canyons that make up this national monument. The road climbs from the Grand Valley more than 2,000 feet to the park’s high country, winding along the plateau rim. The highest point, overlooking Ute Canyon, is at an elevation of 6,640 feet. Guard rails? Don’t be silly.

If you enter the park at the West Entrance, near the little town of Fruita, you must first negotiate Dead Man’s Curve before passing through a pair of tunnels on the twisting climb up to the Visitor Center and the view of iconic Independence Monument.

If you enter the park at the East Entrance, on the outskirts of the city of Grand Junction, you’ll encounter another tunnel as you maneuver through the Devil’s Kitchen and the Dog’s Tooth, past the Serpents Trail, on your way to Cold Shivers Point.

There must be a romantic side to Colorado National Monument. I saw a young couple holding hands. Of course, maybe they just had the cold shivers.

It is logical to conclude that the romance of Colorado National Monument lies in its history and the legacy of John Otto. If any unit in the National Park System is the culmination of one man’s dream, it is “The Monument” (as locals like to call it). Otto was a dreamer, a man who loved these canyons more than anything, or anyone, else. Some people thought he was crazy. And maybe they were right.

“I came here last year and found these canyons, and they felt like the heart of the world to me,” Otto wrote in 1907. “I’m going to stay ... and promote this place, because it should be a national park.”

For years, Otto lived alone in the wild and desolate country southwest of Grand Junction. He loved the land so much that he campaigned tirelessly for it to be set aside as a national park. Encouraged by Otto, residents of Grand Junction deluged politicians in Washington, D.C., with letters and petitions supporting the proposal.

Meanwhile, Otto, without any thought or hope of personal gain, built miles of trails through the proposed park area so that others could appreciate its beauty.

In 1911, his dream came true as Colorado National Monument was established by President William H. Taft. Otto was rewarded by being named the park’s caretaker, a job he gladly held until 1927 for one dollar a month.

But the job, and the canyons he loved, took a heavy toll on his personal life. On June 20, 1911, Otto married Beatrice Farnham at the base of Independence Monument. It was a short, unhappy union. A few weeks after the wedding, Beatrice left Otto, never to return. She simply could not live the kind of life Otto loved. And, perhaps, she could not compete with her rival — “The Monument.”

Thus, a romantic triangle played a familiar, sour ring. It’s an old story.

Situated at the edge of the Uncompahgre Uplift, Colorado National Monument is part of the greater Colorado Plateau, which also embraces geologic wonders like the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon and Arches national parks. In the park’s deep canyons, vertical cliff walls and great natural rock sculptures tower overhead, rising from the canyon floor like skyscrapers in stone.

There’s Monument Canyon, Wedding Canyon, Ute Canyon, Red Canyon. At Cold Shivers Point, you’re looking into Columbus Canyon. On the other side of the road is No Thoroughfare Canyon.

In all, the park covers 32 square miles, home to mountain lions, coyotes, golden eagles, desert bighorn and the colorful collared lizard, just for starters. There are seven relatively easy short hiking trails into and overlooking the canyons, including the Devils Kitchen Trail, which leads to a rock room formed by huge, upright boulders, and the Serpents Trail. Constructed between 1912 and 1921, the Serpents Trail was the first motorized route into the Monument. At one time, it was called “the Crookedest Road in the World.”

There are also seven more difficult back-country trails, including the Corkscrew Trail Loop, which was built by John Otto in 1909.

At the west end of the park, there’s Balanced Rock, a 600-ton boulder perched on a pedestal. There’s also the purple-gray Book Cliffs and Window Rock, a hole carved out of a crack in a stone wall by thousands of years of erosion.

And, of course, there’s Independence Monument, a 450-foot high free-standing rock formation, which is actually the lone remnant of a solid rock wall that once separated Wedding Canyon from Monument Canyon. It remains because it has a layer of Cap Rock, which is more resistant to erosion.

Each year on the Fourth of July, a team of climbers scales Independence Monument to raise an American flag at the summit.

At the Visitor Center, there’s an easy trail that leads out to the Book Cliffs View, Window Rock and a good view of Balanced Rock. The Visitor Center has information, exhibits, a couple of good introductory videos, as well as schedules of guided walks and talks.

A little farther down the road is Grand View, which provides great views of Monument Canyon and the Kissing Couple.

The road swings through an area known as the Half Tunnel — the site of a tragic construction accident in the 1930s. The Half Tunnel section of the road had to be carved quite literally out of the side of the mountain.

The Coke Ovens Overlook provides a great view of the Coke Ovens, a series of colorful rock domes created by the natural sculpting forces of wind, water and ice. The half-mile Coke Ovens Trail provides a closer look at these fascinating natural formations.

Perhaps, the most unusual rock formation of them all can be found at the Upper Ute Canyon Overlook. It is a huge formation in the facing cliff wall called The Egyptian Mummy. It looks like it was airlifted straight out of the Sahara Desert.

And don’t miss Fallen Rock Overlook, which is just a couple hundred yards down the road. Fallen Rock is a huge rock slab, weighing hundreds of tons, which fell about 100 feet from the opposing cliff face. But it did not simply break off and come plunging down. Instead, it actually slid down the face of the cliff over many centuries, as its foundation was continually weakened by flash flooding through the years.

It’s a fascinating sight, and a practical example of the awesome power of simple erosion. Spectacular, dramatic and educational.

But ... it just isn’t romantic.

Next: Science on Thunder Mountain

Comments and questions are welcome. Email The Highwayman at hwm4travel@comcast.net

Way Stations

Born in Marthasville, Mo., in 1870, John Otto was often referred to as “The Trail Builder” or “The Hermit of Monument Park” in magazine and newspaper stories. He was the first to scale Independence Monument with an American flag. Otto was said to have tended to Colorado National Monument like “a personal kingdom” and was rarely seen without his two burros — Foxie and Cookie — laden with camping equipment and provisions.

John and Beatrice divorced in 1912. Otto lived his final 20 years on a mining claim near Yrecka, Calif. He died in 1952, penniless, at the age of 81 and was buried in a pauper’s grave. In 2002, 50 years after his death, the Colorado National Monument Association erected a gravestone carved from sandstone and resembling Independence Monument.

Construction of Rim Rock Drive began in 1931 and was completed by the Civilian Conservation Corps, which took up the project in 1933. Nine men were killed in the tragic Half Tunnel accident, and their names are listed on a memorial plaque at the site.

Rim Rock Drive is especially popular with bicyclists, and in the 1980s, it was a stage of a major international bicycle race known as the “Coors Classic.” The race through the park became known as the “Tour of the Moon” because of the spectacular landscapes.

cutlines

The Coke Ovens are a series of colorful rock domes.

Independence Monument, a 450-foot free standing formation, is the remnant of what was once a canyon wall.

Outskirts of the city of Grand Junction can be seen in the valley below Cold Shivers.

The Egyptian Mummy can be viewed from the overlook at Upper Ute Canyon.